Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Home sales this year are at their best for Portland since
2006. This has put an upward pressure on Portland home values that has
climbed an average of 3.4% over the year. The down cycle experienced over
the past six years appears to be ending with all reported measures of real
estate activity improving.

Buyer’s have re-entered the market taking advantage of
affordable pricing and low interest rates. This is a great turn for those
who have been waiting to sell their house. Home sales in the Portland
Area were up 20% from the year prior, and 24% from the bottom Portland hit in
2010. The number of homes placed up for sale also continues to be the
lowest inventory at just 3.8 months since July 2006. This increased
buying and low inventory has put an upward pressure on home prices, and often
homes that are located well are selling with multiple offers. In the past
six year cycle, it appears Portland hit a low point in home sales and pricing
between 2010 and 2011.

The average market time to sell a home in the Portland Metro
Area is currently 102 days – a decrease of 29% from this time last year.
The market time to sell a Portland home that is priced right and located in a
popular close-in neighborhood is just under ONE-week!

The average sale price of a Portland Home is currently
$284,600. The median price $243,300.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor
opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around
$200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage
earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are still hovering 4%!

Do you know someone looking to buy or sell a home? Please have them call me at 503-784-7626.

Monday, October 22, 2012

Home sales this past summer were at their best for Portland
since 2006. This has put an upward pressure on Portland home values that
has climbed an average of 3% over the year. The down cycle experienced
over the past six years appears to be ending with all reported measures of real
estate activity improving. Read my summary below to see how this may benefit you.

Buyer’s have re-entered the market taking advantage of
affordable pricing and low interest rates. This is a great turn for those
who have been waiting to sell their house. Home sales in the Portland
Area were up 18% from the year prior, and 22% from the bottom Portland hit in
2010. The number of homes placed up for sale also continues to be the
lowest inventory since July 2006. This increased buying and low inventory
has put an upward pressure on home prices, and often homes that are located
well are selling with multiple offers. In the past six year cycle, it
appears Portland hit a low point in home sales and pricing between 2010 and
2011.

The average market time to sell a home in the Portland Metro
Area is currently 115 days – a decrease of 21% from this time last year.
The market time to sell a Portland home that is priced right and located in a
popular close-in neighborhood is just under ONE-week!

The average sale price of a Portland Home is currently
$281,400.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor
opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around
$200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage
earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are still hovering 4%!

Call Steven Welch at Northwest Mortgage Group if you
think it’s time to refinance or buy. And please, if you know someone
looking for help buying or selling have them call me at 503-784-7626.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Home sales in the Portland Area continue to improve. Every
measure of real estate activity is positive when comparing July 2012 to the
prior year. The number of homes sold this past month had increased 15%
and the median sales price increased 7.8% (see the Average and Median Sale
Price Graph below).

The number of homes placed up for sale continues to
be the lowest inventory since July 2006. It would take just 4.6 months to
sell the 9,041 active listings – substantially less than the 19.2 months of
inventory we had in Portland in 2009. Buyer’s have re-entered the market
taking advantage of affordable pricing and low interest rates.

The average market time to sell a home in the Portland Area
is currently 100 days – a decrease of 25% from this time last year.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor
opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around
$200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage
earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are still hovering 4%!

Friday, July 13, 2012

Every measure of real estate activity is positive when comparing June 2012 to
the prior year. The number of homes sold increased 22% and the median
sales price rose 8.6%. This
represents the highest number of homes sold since August 2007.

The number
of homes placed up for sale dropped again in June and continues to be the
lowest inventory since March 2007. It would take just 3.9 months to sell
the 8,800 active listings – substantially less than the 19.2 months of inventory
we had in Portland in 2009. Buyer’s have re-entered the market taking
advantage of affordable pricing and low interest rates.

The average market time to sell a home in the Portland Area
is currently 114 days – a decrease of 25% from this time last year.

About half of home sellers traded up to a larger sized and
higher priced home and 60% purchased a newer
home.

The typical seller lived in their home for nine years. In 2007,the
typical tenure in a home was only six years.

Eighty-seven percent of sellers were assisted by a real
estate agent when selling their home.

Recent sellers typically sold their homes for 95% of the listing price, and 61% reported they reduced the asking price at least once.

Forty-one percent of sellers offered incentives to attract
buyers, most often assistance with home warranty policies and closing costs.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor
opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around
$200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage
earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are still hovering 4%!

Monday, May 21, 2012

Home sales in the Portland Area continue to improve.
Home sales increased 13% over the first quarter of 2012, while the number of
homes for sale has decreased almost 10%. This buying activity and
shrinking inventory of homes for sale is having a positive effect on home
values. Read my summary below and the attached to see how this may
benefit you.

The number of Portland Area homes sold last year were up 4%
from the year earlier, and surpassed 2008 and 2009 with a similar margin.
This positive trend has continued into 2012 with an increase in sale activity
by 13%. It seems buyer’s have re-entered the market taking advantage of
affordable pricing and low borrowing costs. In fact, with the exception
of March and April of 2010 which were impacted by deadlines for the First-Time
Homebuyer Tax Credit, the number of homes sold in April were higher than any
month since 2007.

All of this buying is combined with a reducing inventory of
homes for sale. Homes that are located well and priced correctly are
selling quickly and often with multiple offers. There are currently 8,500
Portland Area Homes for sale - a substantial decrease from a peak of over
18,200 homes for sale in the summer of 2008. The number of homes for sale
in the first quarter of 2012 were down almost 10%. I believe Portland
Home Values will likely increase into 2012.

The average market time to sell a home in the Portland Area
is currently 132 days – a decrease of over 18% from this time last year.

Nationally:

By Alan J. Heavens, Philly Daily
News

The nation’s Realtors say they have just finished the
strongest first quarter in home sales in five years, and sales contracts are
pointing to a strong second three months.

At the National Association of Realtors’ midyear meetings in
Washington this week, chief economist Lawrence Yun said “positive underlying
economic factors were helping spur home sales.”

Among the positives, according to Yun, are high
affordability conditions, increased job creation, improving consumer confidence
and an increase in rental costs that make mortgage payments look like a
bargain.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor
opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around
$200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage
earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are still hovering 4%!

Do you know someone looking to buy or sell a home?
Please have them call me at 503-784-7626.

Saturday, March 31, 2012

Home sales in the Portland Area continues to show improvement. Home sales increased 18% this past month, 15% over the past 6 months, and the number of homes for sale has decreased by almost 30%! This is having a positive effect on values. Read my summary below to see how this may benefit you.

The number of Portland Area homes Sold in 2011 increased 4% from the year earlier, and surpassed 2008 and 2009 with a similar margin. This positive trend has continued into 2012 with an increase in sale activity by almost 18% this past month. This is great news for home values. The average cost of a home in Portland is currently $251,300 – an annual increase of almost 2%, and great news considering values had steadily decreased since 2007. Lawrence Yun, NAR's chief economist, said in a statement that "the trend in contract activity implies we are on track for a more meaningful sales gain this year." “Movements in the index have been uneven, reflecting the headwinds of tight credit, but job gains, high affordability and rising rents are hopefully pushing the market into what appears to be a sustained housing recovery," Yun added.

There are currently 8,300 Portland Area homes up for Sale. This is a substantial decrease from a peak of over 18,200 homes for sale in the summer of 2008.Portland Home Values will likely increase if this inventory reduces further in 2012. Homes that are located well and priced to attract a buyer are selling quickly and often with multiple offers.

The spikes in sales in late-2009 and mid-2010 (shown below) were due to the home buyer tax credit deadlines. Outside of these spike periods, the past two months of sales are at the highest levels in 5 years.

Inventory has been steadily falling. The charts show the raw number of visible inventory of homes for sale. There are seasonal patterns, with more listings in spring and summer compared to winter.

The median home price showed a slight increase in February from one year ago. The increase is more due to the mix of homes issue where the upper-end market, which had been very sluggish in recent past, is beginning to move. The market is still dominated by sales in the lower price points.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around $200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are under 4%!

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Home sales in the Portland Area continues to show improvement. Home sales have increased 4% this past year, while the number of homes for sale has decreased by more than 25%! Read my summary below to see how this may benefit you.

The number of Portland Area homes Sold in 2011 increased 4% from the year earlier, and has surpassed 2008 and 2009 with a similar margin. This is good news especially considering the years earlier had included tax credit incentives that substantially bumped sales activity. The average cost of a home in Portland is currently $263,300 – equivalent to the average price of a Portland home in 2004-05.

There are currently 8,612 Portland Area homes up for Sale. This is a substantial decrease from a peak of over 18,200 homes for sale in the summer of 2008. Portland Home Values will likely increase if this inventory reduces further in 2012.

Homes that are located well and priced to attract a buyer are selling quickly and sometimes with multiple offers.

2012 Home Sales: Positives on Many Fronts
by Robert Freedman, January 3, 2012.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) released its latest pending home sales index figure last week and for the second month in a row the index is up. But more than that, the index has broken 100. This is significant because the only time since the housing boom collapsed that the index has broken 100 is when the home owner tax credit was in effect. The fact that the index has returned to that level a year since the credit has been in effect means the housing market is strengthening completely on its own, without any stimulus.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun is upbeat about 2012 because in a number of areas indicators are pointing upward. Not only are home sales up but housing starts are up and home prices are stabilizing in many markets and heading up in some. In areas where they’re still down, the declines aren’t that great. More fundamentally, broader U.S. economic signs are looking positive, including the all-important jobs picture. About 100,000 job are being created a month, and that could rise to 150,000—still not a quick enough pace to get us back to where we were before the downturn but the headwinds are in the right direction.

Homes are affordable and there are great investor opportunities. First-time buyers can find quality homes priced around $200,000. Higher-end homes are affordable to middle-income wage earners. And, Mortgage Interest Rates are still at 4%!

Do you know someone looking to buy or sell a home? Please have them call me.

About Me

A local resident for over 40 years, Darin is at home in Portland. He has worked full-time as a Broker since 2005 and is dedicated to being a resource to his clients. He is a graduate from Portland State University with a Business Degree in Finance, so numbers come natural to him. If you'd like to know what your house is worth - Call him! He began his professional career as a financial analyst for the City of Portland and worked progressively with Portland’s water utility for 17 years.

After a long career with the City, Darin’s restless nature led him to a successful 12 year career in real estate. He bought his first home in 1993 in SE Portland at 43rd & Clinton – just a short walk from the Portland Digs’ office.

Undoubtedly, you’ll feel his love of the business and experience comforting. Darin works hard for his clients and is available to help first-time home buyers, investors, and long-time homeowners looking to move.

When he’s not working, Darin spends time on a motorcycle, or on the Columbia River windsurfing.